Tag: cooking light

It’s back to school and here’s an easy recipe that will be a go to for you and your family. I love making this for my family because it’s quick, healthy and fills their bellies. When school starts back we all are in the grind of life, adjusting to a new school year schedule. There are footballs practices, ballet rehearsals, music recitals and a thousand other things we have to focus on, so let dinner be one thing, you pour Love into, but not lots of time. But hey it can taste like it. 😉

Note: A short cut here for this recipe is to precooked the potatoes the night before or use frozen potatoes. I prefer to precook fresh potatoes the night before, fresh ingredients really does make a difference. If you do, cook them until they are mostly tender and not mushy. They will cook later in the recipe.

INGREDIENTS:

2 Tablespoons olive oil

4-5 Sweet Italian Turkey sausage links

10 medium red potatoes, cut in half

1 large yellow onion, sliced

3 bell peppers, any color, sliced into strips. I used what was in the fridge.

2 garlic cloves, minced

3/4 cup Low Sodium Vegetable Broth

1 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Sea salt to taste

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

Add the red potatoes to a pot of boiling water, cook until mostly tender, they will cook in the saucepan with the sausage and peppers later. Drain and set aside.

*If you are using precooked potatoes or frozen, skip this step above.

While the potatoes are cooking, Poke each sausage a few times with a paring knife or fork (this helps release steam as they cook).

In a large skillet with a lid, heat olive oil over medium heat. Once hot, add sausages and brown gently and slowly. Cook for 3- 5 minutes, turning occasionally to gently brown on all sides. (They should not be fully cooked.) Once browned, remove sausages to a plate. Set aside.

Add vegetable broth, to deglaze the saucepan, scraping bottom of pan with a wooden spoon to release bits. Simmer the vegetable broth until reduced by half.

Add Italian seasoning. Stir well to combine. Add sausages and the potatoes. Add salt to taste and gently toss. Bring to a simmer then reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer until potatoes and peppers are soft and sausages are cooked.

Broccoli and Parmesan Cheese with a twist

This is a simple recipe, but it has a twist. Instead of using water to steam the broccoli you use vegetable broth. It gives the broccoli so much flavor. In a sauce pan add a bit of oil on heat the stove on medium heat . Toss in 2 cups of broccoli florets. Stir the florets around in the pan to help coat them with the oil. Add in a 1/3 cup of low sodium vegetable. Place the lid on top of the pan and allow to steam until the liquid has evaporated. Remove from heat and add parmesan cheese on top, place lid back onto the pan to help the cheese melt. Serve immediately. Enjoy

Okay, so my biggest client is my husband. He is in amazing shape… and the Oscar goes to his wife, that’s me, for making him delicious and healthy meals, everyday. Yes everyday, well almost everyday. Lol 😂

He went for his yearly annual and his doctor told him most everything looked awesome, just had to watch those carbs. Of course, I get a call, because my husband is serious about his health and he married his nutritionist.

“Honey, he says, I need to cut back on the carbohydrates, but how do I do that and still enjoy what I love to eat? ”

Well before we get to that, let’s look at Why Carbohydrates are good for us:

Here’s the deal on carbohydrates, first off they are our friends. We need carbs to function, they give us energy. They help fuel our brains, kidneys, heart, muscles and central nervous system. They help us fill full and assist in keeping our blood cholesterol levels on point.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, you should consume, at the very least, the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) of carbohydrates, which is 130 grams for adults, 175 grams for women who are pregnant and 210 grams for women who are breastfeeding. According to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2010, women should consume 25 grams of fiber on a daily basis, while men should consume 38 grams of fiber on a daily basis. Source:WebMD

If you have health issues, like diabetes or prediabetic this number can vary based on your doctors evaluation.

If you have diabetes, you should see a doctor or dietitian who can help you plan meals to control your blood sugar. Though your daily carbohydrate requirements are the same as those for someone without diabetes, it’s important to avoid eating too many carbohydrates in one sitting. The American Diabetes Association suggests that you should limit your intake to about 45 to 60 grams of carbohydrates at each meal. SOURCE: WebMD

If you are just cutting back, I like to suggest 100 grams a day for weight loss. Substituting your simple carbs with more complex carbs, like brown rice for white rice, eating more fruits, whole grains and legumes. Eliminating simple carbs out of your diet, like sugary foods, white flour and white potatoes.

Also knowing how to count your carbs is very important. For example, multi grain bread may have 21 grams of carbs, but 4 grams of fiber, you subtract the fiber and you get a true number of how many carbs will be in that slice of bread. Got it?

Enough of the science, here’s some healthy substitutes I bought my husband that I know he will eat.

Popcorn instead of chips, is the big one for all of us:

The Special K bars have 11 g of carbs, the Dave’s Killer Bread, thin slice has 9 g of carbs, for breakfast he toast that and add a tablespoon of Nutella on it ,which is 10 g of carbs. The Smart Food popcorn has 11 g in 1 3/4 cups . We are cutting his desserts down to once a week, because we are not skipping on dessert. 🍮 . He eats some type of protein with each meal. The carbs gives him energy, while the protein builds muscles, skin, and hair. Both are needed in order to stabilize blood sugar and are best when eaten together.

So there you have it folks, my long answer to a question I think a lot of us are asking. Need more low car tips, just shoot me an email. Oh yes, I almost forgot, remember to Set the Table with Love.

Here’s another really beautiful appetizer it is my leftover risotto balls. These are very simple to make and they are absolutely gorgeous, especially when you pair it with my sun-dried tomato pesto. I am just going to get to the recipe here, so you can get back to make the evening more magical.

Ingredients:

3 cups cooked risotto

1 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup Italian seasoned fine dry bread crumbs

Sundried Tomato Pesto:

2 cups sun dried tomatoes, drained, if packed in oil

1 cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup packed fresh basil leaves

2 garlic cloves, crushed under a knife and peeled

Directions: 1 Using lightly greased or wet hands, shape leftover risotto into 1-inch balls. Return balls to the baking pan. Cover and chill about 2 hours or until balls are completely chilled.

2 In a large skillet, heat 1 cup oil over medium-high heat. Roll rice balls in beaten eggs, then in bread crumbs to coat.

3 Cook rice balls, one-fourth at a time, in hot oil for 2 to 3 minutes or until golden brown, carefully turning once. Using a slotted spoon, remove rice balls and drain on paper towels. Keep warm in a 200 degrees F oven while cooking the remaining rice balls. Once all the balls cooked plate them with a side of sun dried tomato pesto.

Sun dried tomato pesto:

Process all the ingredients in a food processor fitted with the metal blade until the mixture forms a coarse paste. This pesto will keep in the fridge inside an airtight container up to one month.

Yesterday was incredible at William Sonoma in Norcross in the Peachtree Forum. I got a chance to cook for their customers. The evening was about Farm to Table Healthy Holiday Side Dishes. My biggest conviction about food is EAT LOCAL. SUPPORT FARMERS. EAT MORE PLANT BASED MEALS. So, it’s really cook when William Sonoma welcomes you back to share your convictions with a side of farm fresh yummies.

TURNIPS AND TURNIPS GREEN WITH ORANGE, ROSEMARY AND POMEGRANATE

This particular dish was a big hit. The recipe was from Vicky Fry, the amazing farmer and friend I get my produce from, she is the owner of Fry Farm in Bethlehem, Ga. She told me how she made her turnips and I decided to take that beautiful recipe on and make it for my cooking demo. It was so much fun, watching people here in the south, eat turnips and turnip greens in a totally different way. Okay, here’s the deal on that statement. Southerns love our turnips and turnip greens cooked for 2 hours with a piece of fatback swimming around in the pot. Hey I am Georgia girl I get it and my mom did some mean greens, y’all, but we have to think about sound the box sometimes. I am very grateful for Vicky sharing this recipe. You know how we do it, the recipe was a little this and a little of that. LOL. I hope you will like how I put together a little of this and a little that, and perhaps use this recipe for your Holiday festivities.

Add oil and butter to a sauté pan on medium high heat. Add in your turnips, season with salt and sauté for a 3-4 minutes until you get a little caramelization onto the the turnips. Add in garlic, rosemary,thyme, oregano and red pepper flakes, continue to cook and stir. Add in juice from the orange, continue to cook. Remove turnips from the pan into a bowl, set a side. Add greens into the sauté pan, stir. Add seasonings, black pepper, sea salt, dried thyme and oregano. Sauté for 2 -3 minutes. Remove from pan. Plate the greens on a platter, add the turnips on top, add the pomegranate on top with a little orange zest ( optional). I like to squeeze a little of the orange juice on top.

* NOTE: YOU CAN ADD THE ORANGES INTO THE TURNIPS WHEN COOKING TO GIVE MORE A CITRUS FLAVOR TO THE TURNIPS. I ADD THEM CLOSE TO THE END OF COOKING. YOU CAN KEEP THEM IN IF YOU LIKE AS A COLORFUL GARNISH.

I was shopping around in my favorite store, William Sonoma when I came across this large colorful pasta shells. They are called Lumaconi pasta shells, shaped like the shell of a snail. They are hollow inside, and open at one end, closing in on itself at the other end. The colors intrigued me the most. I had to do something with them, but they could not be drowned in sauce. You must see the color. I decided to go with a vegan recipe, so this dish popped up in my head. This dish is very beautiful and elegant. I served the pasta on top of a bed of the quinoa mixture. I drizzled olive oil all over it. Traditionally this type of pasta causes for sauce, but the olive oil and the lemon zest was just enough.

Enjoy! Remember to Always Set the Table with Love.

Stuffed Lumaconi Pasta with Quinoa, Cranberries and Green peas

Ingredients:

4 lumaconi pasta shells, they are very large, prepare according to package directions.

1 cup quinoa, rinsed well

1 1/2 cup water, for quinoa

1 tablespoon of olive oil

1 small onion, finely diced

1 garlic clove, minced

1 tbsp dried fennel

1/2 tbsp lemon juice

Sea salt and black pepper to taste

1 cup frozen organic green peas

1/2 cup dried cranberries, good quality cranberries

lemon zest

Generous drizzle of the best extra virgin olive

Directions:

Cook your quinoa according to package instruction. Make sure to rinse it well. It will cook for about 15 minutes or until the water is absorbed. Set aside. Cook the pasta shells according to the package instructions. While the pasta is cooking. Add the olive oil to a medium sauté pan, on medium heat. Add your onions and cook until soften. Add and stir in the garlic and allow to cook for another 1-2 minutes. Do not burn the garlic. Add the fennel seeds. Allow the fennel seeds to get warmed up in the pan, for about a minute. Add the green peas and cranberries. Stir. Add the cooked quinoa into the pan with the aromatics ( onions, fennel and garlic) and the lemon juice. Stir. Remove from heat.

Take one pasta shell at a time and gently stuff in some of the quinoa mixture. On a plate add some of the quinoa mixture on to a dish. Place the stuffed shell on top. Drizzle a nice amount of olive oil and lemon zest on top of the entire dish. If you need sauce, you can make a nice lemon vinaigrette to drizzle over this dish as well.

I love french inspired food, using the familiar and making it your own. The beauty of living in the melted pot, is we get to learn from each other and infuse our cultures. The brilliance of doing this, we create new experiences and new traditions for our families.

This french inspired gratin dish is for my vegetarians out there. You can easy make it vegan, by using olive oil, non dairy cream and vegan meltable cheese.

My memories of this dish, is my mom’s super cheesy version of her own take of potato gratin. It almost reminded me of her macaroni and cheese, It was one of my favorite dishes. She would make it in the Fall, as soon as the weather got a little nippy. I thought about her today and with the weather changing, I decided to make a gratin in honor of her. However, I like to take dishes that are familiar and put my own signature on them. I made mines with crispy green apples, onions, garlic and white cheddar cheese. I seasoned the apples with nutmeg, cinnamon, sea salt and black pepper. I think my southern mama, would have approved and told me, I should have went heavier on the cinnamon, the butter and of course the cream. LOL. 🙂 The recipe is a little tart, sweet and cheesy. It is not your typical heavy, creamy potato gratin, but I believe it will become one of your favorite alternatives. Bon a petit!

Preheat the oven to 375. Butter the mini dutch oven, ramekin or small baking dish.

In a large saute pan, heat 2 tbsp of the butter over medium heat. Add the chopped onions and garlic. Cook until soft and translucent. Add green apples slices. Do not use the top or the bottom part of the apple slices, just he ones that are not covered with the peel. Add the seasonings and the fennel. Stir gently to incorporate all the flavors. Cook for about 3-4 minutes.

Transfer half of the mixture into the baking dish. Add half of the grated white cheddar cheese and add the rest of the mixture. Pour the cream over top. Sprinkle the bread crumbs, thyme leaves, and cheese on top. Dot the remaining 1 tbsp butter on top.

Bake until golden brown and bubbly, 15-20 minutes. Serve immediately, add the fresh thyme leaves on top as garnish.

Who doesn’t love a good waffle. They are crunchy on the outside, moist and soft in the inside. We lather them with lots of butter and good Vermont Maple Syrup. I am bias about maple syrup. I believe the best syrup is made in Vermont and I am Georgia girl. But sometimes you want to expand your mind and come up with something a little different. Well, in this case, a lot different. I so enjoyed sitting in my kitchen and thinking of how I could make a waffle, savory. I looked in my fridge, pantry, and garden, because these are the places that inspire me to make innovative recipes, with what I have on hand.

I am not one to go out regularly and buy a ton of ingredients to make a dish. Use what you have, no waste, my mama always taught me. She could make a thanksgiving dinner from an egg, head of lettuce and loaf of bread. LOL! Hey , she was before her time, she would have blown the competition away on Food Network, Chopped.

Well, she was my hero in some many ways, especially in the kitchen. Okay, with that being said, I found leeks and potatoes in my kitchen and decided to make this potato and leek savory waffle. It was so delicious and it’s vegan, gluten free and I made a raw basil oil to dress it. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did.

Combine almond milk and vinegar in a small mixing bowl and let set for a few minutes to activate, it will get bubbly. Then add olive oil , maple syrup and whisk. Set aside.
Add dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl and whisk until well combined.
Add wet ingredients to dry and mix until well incorporated. Let set for 5-10 minutes, this will allow the, baking powder and vinegar mixture to activate even more. It will give you a very fluffy waffle. Heat up your waffle pan.

For the Potato and Leek mixture:

Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan on medium heat. Add in the small diced potatoes. Stir and allow them to cook until they are slightly golden brown and soften. Add the diced onions, red bell peppers and leeks. Stir. Allow them to cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the diced garlic cloves . Stir and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Once cool GENTLY fold the mixture into the waffle batter, leave about 1/4 cup of potato and leek mixture out, to use as a garnish, if you desire. IF NOT YOU CAN ADD THE WHOLE MIXTURE INTO THE BATTER.
Once waffle iron is hot and ready to go, generously coat with non-stick spray and pour on about 1/2 cup of batter. Cook according to manufacturer instructions and then remove and place on a baking rack in a 200 degree oven to keep warm. In order to keep them crispy , do not stack and instead keep them in a single layer.

Basil oil

Wash basil leaves. Squeeze out water and dry with paper towel.
Place basil, the oil and salt into a blender or food processor and puree.
Let it settle a little then pour into a glass container. Drizzle over your waffles.
Use immediately or refrigerate. Making this oil a day in advance, will intensify the flavor. Fridge shelf life ~ one week.

Today I spent time with my friend Melissa. We both are true southern girls, so we love ourselves some cornbread. I made two versions of this recipe. One vegetarian and one vegan. They both were very delicious. We talked about our childhood, birth order, being girls, southern 🙂 and how much we both love dessert. You know of course I had to have dessert, so I made this Vegan Nice Dream using my Go Raw Apple Cinnamon Sprouted Granola. Now remember to scroll down, that recipe with be at the end of this blog post.

Okay, back to the cornbread. The cornbread is sweet and the beans are spicy, an awesome combination. I topped the beans with cheese, and some cilantro and added fresh tomatoes all around the whole dish. I hope you will share this with your family and enjoy it as much as we girls did. Well till next time. Set the Table with Love.

2. In a large bowl, beat the wet ingredients with an electric mixer on low speed until well blended.

3. In a separated bowl, whisk together dry ingredients until thoroughly blended. Gradually, with a blender on low speed, add in the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients until the mixture is thick like cake batter. Spread evenly in the cast-iron pan.

4. Bake 25-30 minutes, or until top is firm and edges are lightly browned.

1 cup of grated white cheddar cheese for the vegetarian version as a topping, 1 cup of vegan cheddar cheese for the vegan version as a topping

Directions:

Add olive oil to a deep sauce pan on medium high heat. Add onions and red bell peppers, cook for about 3 minutes. Add beans and stir. Add spices and stir until beans are coated with the spices. Add 1 tbsp of the vegetable broth, turn the heat down to medium. Cook for 4-5 minutes more adding the rest of the vegetable broth. Cook on a low heat for another 7-8 minutes, until beans are a little tender but still have a firmness.

Remove the cornbread from the cask iron pans, by flipping them over into a plate. The bottom part should be face up. Scoop the middle of the cornbread out, about 1 1/2 – 2 inches down. Keeping the bottom in tack. You need to just scoop out enough to allow a space for the beans. Add the hot beans into the hollow of the cornbread. The beans need to be hot to melt the cheese, so if you need to warm them up some, do so. Once they are heated up, add the cheese on top, and the cilantro. Add the quartered tomatoes around the entire dish, if desired.

I am so enjoying using all my Go Raw junk free foods, to create some yummy recipes, savory and sweet. I am on the sweet treats right now. I had my granddaughter over yesterday and we made these yummy little tarts. They make a healthy and delicious treat for kids, quick dessert, yummy break and of course, great for an afternoon snacks. I know you will enjoy them as well.

Go Raw Key Lime Coconut Tarts

Ingredients:

Crust:

1 1/2 cup Go Raw Apple Cinnamon Sprouted Granola

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1 tbsp maple syrup

1 tsp coconut oil

1 tbsp juiced orange

pinch of sea salt

1 tbsp purified water, as needed

Go Raw Key Lime Coconut Tarts

Filling

1 medium Hass avocado, pitted and peeled

1⁄2 cup melted coconut milk

1⁄4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice

1⁄2 cup pure maple syrup

1 tablespoon coconut oil, melted

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pinch sea salt

1 tablespoon lime zest

Directions:

To make the crust, add the Go Raw Apple Cinnamon Sprouted Granola, dried cranberries, and sea salt to your food processor. Add the oil and orange juice. Process until the ingredients are mixed and broken down well, and they stick together when you collect a small handful and squeeze. If they are not sticky enough, add a little water to the mixture, a little at a time, until they are sticky .

Oil the mini tart pan, with coconut oil. Take a small ball full of mixture into your hands and press each ball down into the mini tart pan. The recipe will make about 6-8 mini tarts. Place in the freezer to set. Start on your filling.

Blend the filling ingredients together in a high-speed blender or food processor until silky smooth. Remove mini tart crust from the freezer, add the filling into the mini tart crusts, use a spatula or inverted knife to make the top very smooth. Add a piece of Go Raw junk free food Tangy Lime Coconut Crisps as a nice garnish, also sprinkle the lime zest onto each mini tart.

Chill the pie in the freezer for an hour, then transfer it to the fridge and let it set for another 1 hours. Serve chilled.

EXTRA YUM!

If you have more filling left over add it to a bowl, throw on some Go Raw Tangy Lime Coconut Crisps and Apple Cinnamon Sprouted Granola to enjoy this healthy energy snack.

Onions are amazing . They are antibacterial, antioxidant, antiseptic and detoxifying. The crazy weather we are having in Georgia has many of my friends and myself sick with colds, headaches, body aches and the like. My son’s school is closed due to icy road, so I made him some Baked Gluten Free Vegan Cinnamon, Cardamom, and Ginger Glazed Donuts. Now that’s a mouthful. I will post that recipe later this week. Lots of detail. LOL. Needless to say my son ate four donuts in one sitting. Well back to the soup. This is my version of French Onion soup, because this is what I had in my fridge and pantry. I hope you enjoy this spin on French Onion Soup. The Parmesan and Herb Croutons are Gluten free and Vegetarian. If you read my blog, you know I love Belgioioso Vegetarian Parmesan.

French Onion Soup with Gluten Free Parmesan Herbed Croutons

French Onion Soup

Ingredients:

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

1 1/2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp light brown sugar

1 garlic clove, crushed

3 cups organic vegetarian broth

2 tbsp sweet red wine

1 tsp balsamic vinegar

Salt and pepper to taste

Dash of nutmeg

Directions:

Heat the oil in a heavy pan and cook the onions slowly about 30 minutes until they are very soft. Don’t skip this. Slowly cooking the onions bring out there sweetness. Sprinkle the brown sugar and garlic over the onions and cook until the onions are golden brown. Stir in the vegetable stock and red sweet wine, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add your soup to a bowl and top with the Gluten free Vegetarian Parmesan cheese croutons or you can skip the cheese and just add your croutons. Enjoy!!

Gluten Free Vegetarian Parmesan Herbed Croutons

Gluten free Vegetarian Parmesan cheese croutons

Directions:
Break up some Gluten-free Multi grain Udi bread into rustic pieces. Add a tbsp olive oil in a sauté pan and sauté the croutons until golden brown. Add herbs if you like. Top with Vegetarian Parmesan cheese and stick under the broiler until the cheese is melted or for a vegan version skip the cheese.